Thermocouple wire traditionally is composed of two separate wire conductors, each wire conductor being one thermoelement of a thermocouple pair. Each wire conductor generally is insulated by some form of insulating material to separate it from the other wire conductor and to provide some protection from the surrounding environment. The insulated wire conductors may be twisted together to form the thermocouple pair, but more typically both wire conductors are contained by an overall covering or jacket of some additional insulating and/or protective material. The outer layer or jacket not only combines the two insulated wire conductors into the thermocouple pair, but also serves to protect the underlying insulations. As will be appreciated, each layer of insulation and/or protective covering applied to the thermocouple pair adds significantly to the size and cost of the completed wire.
It is also known to provide a thermocouple wire having an outer metal sheath containing densely compacted ceramic insulation and a wire conductor embedded within the ceramic insulation, with the wire conductor and outer metal sheath being used as respective thermoelements of a thermocouple pair. One such type of thermocouple wire or cable is sold under the trademark XACTPAK by the Claud S. Gordon Company, Richmond, Ill. Typically, such cable, although bendable, is relatively stiff and cannot be sharply bent without significantly disrupting the ceramic insulation.